There’s no dispute and there should be no discussion: You need to exercise regardless of your age. And yet, you resist. You make excuses. You don’t have the time or energy. You don’t have the equipment or the money for a gym membership. Or maybe you don’t know what you should be doing. But the bottom line is none of these excuses really hold up. Exercise experts have heard these rationalizations and dismiss them. Why? Because it turns out even modest enhancements of your current daily routines will make a big difference in getting you more fit.

According to Professor of Nursing Libby Richards of Purdue University, in order to hit the 150 minutes target of moderate weekly exercise set by federal guidelines, you need to set specific, realistic goals and expand your concept of what constitutes exercise and how to fit it into your daily life. You can start off very modestly. On the phone? Walk while you talk. Going to the market? Park farther away than usual. See the pattern? Much of increasing your exercise just involves more walking, and you can find out more about how to up your steps by looking at this free Purdue University guide. Health and Science writer Markham Heid echoes this sentiment in his recent post, What’s the Least Amount of Exercise You Need to Stay Healthy. He describes daily walking targets of approximately 7500 steps, which you can build up over the course of the day just by getting up every hour or so and taking a brief walk.

Over at Considerable, writer Stephanie Thurrott makes it even simpler: She identifies the Zero-Minute Workout, which essentially suggests that you don’t even need to set aside dedicated time for exercise. You just need to exert yourself more during your daily routines. Whether you’re doing housework, yard work, taking a walk or arriving at the office, just push yourself a bit more: walk up the stairs a bit faster or increase your walking speed when out and about to amp up your heart rate. The bottom line is that every bit of exertion counts and even short bursts of movement can yield better results. And if you want to add a few pieces of inexpensive equipment in your home to help with the process? Clear a bit of space and take a look at these suggestions from the Smarter Living section of The New York Times.